Sweet Nothings of Doom
by RoGuE-WhItE-DrAgOn
Summary: Sweet nothings? or nothing is sweet. She was a client he wanted to get rid of, and good things never came of their meetings. She was odd, crude, and rebelious. He was cool, calm, and collected. Except around her. Kranna SPOILERS
1. Prologue

Sweet Nothings of Doom

By: Rogue White Dragon (aka Dragoness)

Disclaimer: I don't own TOS

Prologue

"Jerk." His eyebrow twitched for the millionth time, and by now, the odd, irritated, violent feeling forming in his stomach was something he'd become accustomed too.

"Idiot." Another twitch and he finally favored his traveling companion with an extremely annoyed scowl.

"Miss, I would appreciate it if you remained _silent_." She must not have heard him, because she went on, saying

"Bastard." His eyebrow was now beginning to feel numb, and when she added a few other 'names' such as 'ass-whole', 'self-centered-prick', and, his personal favorite 'annoying-mercenary-dude', he spun on his heel to face her, halting the young woman in her tracks. Puzzled, she only raised and innocent brow at him, and asked

"Why're we stopping?" Trying to piece back together his calm expression, he hissed through clenched teeth

"Because, _Miss_, I asked for one moment of _silence_, and an hour of your insistent-"

"I have a name, you know." He turned his back to her again, debating whether or not to just leave her be. A day on her own the middle of no-where could do her some good. On the other hand, so could some near-death experiences.

"Hey, Mercenary, say my name. Now." He shot her another glare, finding it near impossible to stay civil around her. He could deal with bickering royals, snot-nosed nobles, his psychotic boss, but this petite brunette? He shuddered as he began walking again. Maybe he should up his fee? He'd been far too kind in agreeing to escort her from Luin to Asgard for only half what he usually charged, simply because he was already on his way there, and a small tag-along hadn't seemed so bad. She had appeared harmless, if not just a little on the annoying side. Three days travel would go by quickly, and he would be rid of her. Looking back on his decision now, he was disgusted with how stupid he had been. That's the last time he took pity on a human.

"_-come on, Aram, I'll bake you those brownies you love so much!" A brown haired young woman was leaning over the counter towards the only blacksmith in Luin, when Kratos stepped into the small weaponry shop. The young man the brunette had been pestering looked up in relief, and asked_

"_How can I help you?" Kratos approached the counter while ignoring the girl, unsheathing his sword to place in front of the man. _

"_I need this repaired." Was his simple, if not ordinary request. The blacksmith looked at the blade for a moment, before taking it and scurrying into the depths of his shop, away from the woman who was still standing near the counter. Now, though, her gaze was fixed on him, a curious look on her face. _

"_So…" She began, tugging on a stray lock of brown hair while looking him up and down. Her eyes strayed in the direction the man, Aram, had fled to, and then turned a frown back to Kratos. "…I don't suppose you're an assassin for hire?" He didn't even bother to reply, simply shifted the pack slung over his shoulder, and fixed her with a piercing stare that had left lesser men nothing more than shaking mounds of flesh. Unaffected, she sighed a little, looking mildly depressed. "Was worth a shot. Tell him I'll drop by later."_

"Kratos." She had now taken to repeating his name. Over, and over, and over again. One hand touching the hilt of his sword, he began to weigh the option of running her through. One quick swing of his blade, and she'd shut up. Permanently. The idea was far too tempting, and he tried to shift his thoughts to more pleasant, less homicidal things. For example, the blacksmith had done an excellent job on his sword, giving the weapon a good tune up. Which, all together, meant it was now sharper, and more lethal then it had been before he had brought it in. All the better for stabbing.

"Krat_ooooos_." Stabbing a certain brunette that refused to keep her mouth shut. Again, his hand strayed to the hilt of his weapon, as the blade all but called for him to use it. Closing his eyes, he glanced over his shoulder, and after a few deep breaths to calm himself, asked

"Yes?" She was apparently pleased with this, and soon started a one sided conversation about absolutely nothing. A head ache was forming, and the mercenary found himself quickening his pace. Much to his dismay, the girl did so as well, never missing a beet with what she was saying

"-so I said to her that if that bastard was going to go and-" she used words that a young woman should never say, and that he was frankly shocked she even knew as she described a young man from her hometown who should, in her opinion, "-die a horrible, horrible death, be brought back to life, and get disemboweled, have his spleen ripped out, and finally, or maybe this should have been first, castra-" he tuned her out, shuddering once again. She was by far the crudest woman he had ever met. She poked his shoulder, and asked innocently "Don'cha think? Mercenary Dude?" Something about leaving her home must've warped her brain. She had seemed all sweet and innocent back in Luin, and it seemed that the further they got away from it, the more sinister she became. Evil. She was completely evil.

"Hmph." Was his only response.

"_-thanks, Aram! If I didn't have to leave, I'd bake for you for a year!" This was followed by hugging the poor blacksmith till his face turned red. Whatever was in the bundle that Kratos had witnessed Aram giving to the young woman, she was obviously overjoyed. When he was released, Aram produced his only other work of the day, and laid Kratos' sword carefully on the counter. Then, as if the brunette's last sentence had just clicked in, Aram darted wide eyes towards her, and asked_

"_You're leaving? Why?" He paled a little, and half demanded "You haven't been going near the ran-!?" he stopped himself, his eyes pleading as he stared at her. She grimaced, spared Kratos a glance, then shrugged to Aram, and said_

"_Because there is no way I'm going to marry some old-geezer that mom picked out for me." Aram had seemed puzzled, as he said_

"_Nathan's not old, he's only thirty." This earned the blacksmith a small glare, as she replied_

"_I'm nineteen, Aram, that's like, eleven years difference. Anything beyond three is just…well…creepy." Kratos had looked away to hide his half smile, thinking her words nothing more than childish whining. _

"_Where are you going, then?" _

"_Asgard."_

Why oh why couldn't she be just a shy girl, who kept quiet and stayed out of his way? _Because she's the spawn of all that is evil. _If ever the root to all evil was discovered in a single human, it would be her.

"Hey, Mercenary? You should really talk more. My dad always said that talking about your feelings was the best way to express yourself." Her words sounded almost concerned, but he wasn't fooled.

"Miss, I'll ask only once more for you to be quiet." She only tilted her head to the side, and then chose to ignore his warning.

"I can tell you have a lot of pent up rage since you're clenching your hilt reeeeally tightly. That hints at a lifetime of anger. I think if you talked about it…" Not even looking at her, he growled

"The only way I'd talk to you about any-" She yelped suddenly, and pointed towards a monster that had stumbled into their path

"Why kind of body guard are you?! Kill it!" Gracefully, he slid his blade clear of its sheath and approached the large insect, imagining it as a larger version of the woman standing behind him.

"_You're a mercenary? Wow, that's so cool!" She had exclaimed after asking his profession. He was already prepared to leave, but the small being standing in front of him bared his way out. Shrugging at her, he hoped that she'd move aside quickly, since he wanted to be on his way. _

"_If I hired you, could you bring to Asgard?" Her eyes had pleaded, her lip had trembled, and was certain she was fighting the urge to ring her hands in front of him. Sighing a little, he shook his head_

"_I'm sorry Miss, but even if it wasn't my destination, I do not usually escort young women who only wish to flee their duties." She gazed at him with tearful eyes, one hand again tugging at a rogue lock of hair._

"_They're trying to force me into a marriage I want nothing to do with!" She sounded as if she were fighting back a sob, and his conscious seemed to take control of his voice as he gave another sigh, and replied_

"_Alright."_

The monster destroyed, he had to listen as she began to list all the ways in which the giant insect had been killed with more 'murderous intent' than needed. Glancing at the sliced up, shriveled mass that had stood before him, Kratos gave a satisfied nod in its direction. Turning towards his client, he said, sounding much more relaxed

"Come, Anna, we'll never reach Asgard standing around."

00000

soooo, I wrote this cause I needed a bit of a break from my other fic (which, for anyone who's reading TOJ, is now mostly finished). I kind of liked the idea that Anna wasn't some innocent bystander, so when I update, it'll be less of Anna as the innocent ranch victim saved by Kratos and such. So yeah, anywho, the next chapters will be longer than this, sooo thanks for reading, and please review.


	2. Female Trickery Part One

Sweet Nothings of Doom

By: Rogue White Dragon (aka Dragoness)

Disclaimer: I don't own TOS

Female Trickery – Part One

"Sooo…"

"Absolutely not."

"It's a nice spot here…"

"I said no."

"But the sun is shining, and the weather's fine…"

"All the more reason not to."

"Kraaaatoos."

"No."

"But-"

"No." She glared at the back of his head as he walked in front of her, completely refusing to slow down.

"Jerk." She growled, and after hearing some scuffling from behind him, Kratos looked over his shoulder to see what she was doing, but stopped when a small rock hit him the head. Scowling, he turned around and snapped

"You've already slowed us down significantly, Anna. We are barely half way, and it has already been two days." _Two days of torture._

"Two days? That's not bad." Kratos gave an exasperated sigh, and replied

"It's _supposed_ to be a three day trip." Anna blinked at him in surprise, as if he hadn't mentioned it several times already.

"But Kratos, I'm just an ordinary girl, I can't keep up with your super-human-mercenary pace." She even smiled at him sweetly. Eyebrows narrowing at her, he said

"If that is the way you feel, then…" He stalked towards her, and ignored the startled expression on her face as she stepped backwards.

"K-kratos? I wasn't serious." He stopped about a foot away from her, and gave a small nod

"Then keep moving. We're not stopping." She sighed again, making sure he knew she was annoyed. Turning around, Kratos began to lead the way to Asgard like he had been since they left Luin. With his back facing her once again, he should have expected the small projectile that pelted him in the head. The mercenary stopped walking, faced Anna once again, and was in front of her before she could squeak out an apology. Without allowing her to argue, Kratos snatched her small pack from her back, joined it with his own that was resting on his shoulder, and then grabbed the startled brunette. She was smaller than him, and seemed to weigh next to nothing, so he did what he thought was the best thing to keep her out of trouble: he lifted a disgruntled Anna over his free shoulder, and continued the walk again.

"Put me down!" She added to her words by slamming a fist against his back, as if her pounding could force him to do so. She was given no response and Kratos continued the journey for the two of them.

Hardly an hour passed when he felt her give a tug to his hair, her voice sounding oddly optimistic as she said

"Saaaaay, Mercenary, how 'bout we make a deal? If I win, we rest here till tomorrow, if you win, we keep moving till you say otherwise? I'll even walk by myself." Kratos rolled his eyes, and replied

"There will be no deal, Anna. You're not the only one who-" His jaw clenched when she gave a harder tug of his hair, and he was almost certain that she'd ripped some out.

"Come on, Kratos. Tell you what, limited time offer, I'll even shut up for a few hours?" Kratos stopped walking, and unceremoniously dropped the brunette onto the ground. She let out 'oof' when she landed, and spared him a glare as she climbed to her feet.

"Great, I knew you'd come around!" Again she gave him an overly bright smile, and then she turned serious as she began talking again "So, I'm thinking we could have just a harmless little fight, and whoever wins, gets to decide where we'll stop and rest?" The auburn haired mercenary raised an eyebrow, and asked

"You honestly think you could defeat me? I live by my sword, Anna, what could you possibly hope to-" There was a small flash of steel, and Kratos leapt backwards, out of harms way and stared at her, eyes going slightly wide. Had he not moved, the dagger she was now brandishing in her right hand would have done serious damage to his throat. He watched as she gave a small flick of her left wrist, and a second knife seemed to materialize from her sleeve.

"Don't underestimate me just I'm 'cause I'm smaller then you." She told him with a smile. She launched herself at him while he drew his blade, and grinned when he was forced to hastily bring up his longer weapon to block her first dagger. Her second blade charged towards his head but he ducked the blow and used his shoulder to shove her away from him. She answered this with a grunt, and went at him a second time with both knives drawn and ready. He cursed a little, since he couldn't very well kill his client – as tempting as it might have been – but he couldn't exactly allow her win either.

Dropping his sword, he used his hands to catch her wrists, and held them far enough away from him to render her blades harmless.

"That's enough, Anna." She glared at him, paused thoughtfully, and then smiled all too sweetly. He frowned at her, opened his mouth to speak again, but found himself interrupted when she kneed him in the groin. He gave a pained grunt, and his grip tightened on her wrists. She blinked at him in confusion, and muttered

"Well this is a first…" Then promptly kneed him a second time. Unable to take the second blow in a dignified manner, Kratos found himself releasing her, and his knees buckled. "I'll set up camp then, Mercenary-dude. You just recover there for a little while. I'll go get us some firewood." She stuffed her knives back up her sleeves where he could only imagine their sheaths were, then walked away.

Wincing a little, Kratos tried to sit himself up, but found the movement rather difficult. He glared in the direction she left in, and promised himself that the second they reached Asgard, he was going to kill her. Very painfully. Until then, he was going to wallow in his current pain, and hope that some monster would get to her before she came back.

"…then I told Bethy that the best way to get rid of them, was to use her mothers cooking." Anna was currently stirring something in a large pot she had set up above the fire she'd built. "After all, what better way to scare off the unwanted, than by poisoning them?" Kratos, who by now had calmed down enough to stop glaring at her, sighed and asked

"Are you still talking about men, or have you switched to vermin?" He ran a hand threw his auburn hair, and looked curiously at the food she was preparing. Anna looked up at him, one eyebrow arched, as she replied thoughtfully

"I suppose both. Heavens know Bethy had problems with them." She sprinkled some spices into the pot, then went on with talking while she cooked. Kratos had his doubts that she was even paying attention to what she was doing, since she seemed to be more engrossed in her speaking.

"Now, Heather had it worse. This one time…" As Kratos was quickly becoming accustomed too, he tuned her out, and gave her nods whenever she looked up at him expectantly. Honestly, how could women talk forever, and never run out of things to say?

00000

ugh, so, I said longer chapters, and this one and the next chapter were originally going to be together, but I've been working lots, and I wanted to post something, so I decided to put it in two parts. Hopefully, part two will be up within the week, and then I'll work on making the chapters longer. Anywho, thanks for reading, and please review

. ja'ne

thanks for reviewing:

Heisui: yay, you're so far the only reviewer, so thanks for reviewing, it means a lot. I hope you like this short update.


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